Ask the Chatbot Games & Quizzes History & Society Science & Tech Biographies Animals & Nature Geography & Travel Arts & Culture ProCon Money Videos
science fiction
Table of Contents
References & Edit History Quick Facts & Related Topics
Images & Videos
starship Enterprise
Mary Shelley and the birth of Frankenstein
Discover science-fiction writer Ray Bradbury's views on Edgar Allan Poe's “The Fall of the House of Usher”
Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea Robida illustration Amazing Stories Aelita Metropolis Flash Gordon Lock Martin and Michael Rennie in The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951)
For Students
Forbidden Planet poster
science fiction summary
Quizzes
Lobby card for the motion picture film "Things to Come" (1936); directed by William Cameron Menzies. (science fiction, futurism)
Science Fiction Writers Quiz
Related Questions
Read Next
William Shatner and Leonard Nimroy as Captain James T. Kirk and Spock in the tv show Star Trek 1966-1969
50th Anniversary of Star Trek
poem. A poet in a Heian period kimono writes Japanese poetry during the Kamo Kyokusui No En Ancient Festival at Jonan-gu shrine on April 29, 2013 in Kyoto, Japan. Festival of Kyokusui-no Utage orignated in 1,182, party Heian era (794-1192).
World Poetry Day
Discover
Small, white rat (genus Rattus) on a glass table. (rodent, laboratory, experiment)
Cruel and Unusual Punishments: 15 Types of Torture
January 21, 2019: Superbowl LIII will be played at Atlanta's Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Sunday, February 3, 2019 against the New England Patriots and the Los Angeles Rams.
What Was the Super Bowl’s First Blockbuster Commercial?
Remarkable new details of Pluto's largest moon Charon are revealed in this image from New Horizons' Long Range Reconnaissance Imager (LORRI), taken late on July 13, 2015 from a distance of 289,000 miles
Why Is Pluto No Longer a Planet?
Orange basketball on black background and with low key lighting. Homepage 2010, arts and entertainment, history and society
The 10 Greatest Basketball Players of All Time
Young boys working in a thread spinning mill in Macon, Georgia, 1909. Boys are so small they have to climb onto the spinning frame to reach and fix broken threads and put back empty bobbins. Child labor. Industrial revolution
The Rise of the Machines: Pros and Cons of the Industrial Revolution
In this aerial photo, structures are damaged and destroyed October 15, 2005 in Balakot, Pakistan. It is estimated that 90% of the city of Balakot was leveled by the earthquake. The death toll in the 7.6 magnitude earthquake that struck northern Pakistan on October 8, 2005 is believed to be 38,000 with at least 1,300 more dead in Indian Kashmir. SEE CONTENT NOTES.
6 of the World’s Deadliest Natural Disasters
Attack on Pearl Harbor. December 7, 1941. Pearl Harbor infographic. World War II. Hawaii. United States. Japan. SPOTLIGHT VERSION
Attack on Pearl Harbor Timeline

science fiction: Facts & Related Content

verifiedCite
While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions.
Select Citation Style
Share
Share to social media
URL
https://www.britannica.com/facts/science-fiction
Written and fact-checked by
The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

The Information Architects maintain a master list of the topics included in the corpus of  Encyclopædia Britannica, and create and manage the relationships between them.
The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Facts

Also Known As SF • speculative fiction • sci-fi

Photos and Videos

starship Enterprise
Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea
Robida illustration
Amazing Stories
Aelita
Metropolis
Flash Gordon
Lock Martin and Michael Rennie in The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951)
Poster for Godzilla, King of the Monsters!
2001: A Space Odyssey
Mary Shelley and the birth of Frankenstein
Discover science-fiction writer Ray Bradbury's views on Edgar Allan Poe's “The Fall of the House of Usher”
The science behind Marvel's superheroes the Avengers
Know about the grandfather paradox and the concept of traveling back in time
See All Videos and Images →

Related Topics and References

Topics
Dig Deeper: More Articles That Discuss This Topic

Key People

Ted Chiang
Ted Chiang
American author
Nnedi Okorafor
Nnedi Okorafor
Nigerian American author
Liu Cixin
Liu Cixin
Chinese author
N.K. Jemisin
N.K. Jemisin
American author
Anthony Horowitz
Anthony Horowitz
British author
H.G. Wells
H.G. Wells
British author
C.S. Lewis
C.S. Lewis
Irish-born author and scholar
Jules Verne
Jules Verne
French author
James Tiptree, Jr.
American author
Ray Bradbury
Ray Bradbury
American writer
Kurt Vonnegut
Kurt Vonnegut
American novelist
promotional poster for Creature from the Black Lagoon
Jack Arnold
American director
Stanisław Lem
Polish author
Carl Sagan
Carl Sagan
American astronomer
The master of chills and suspense
Stephen King
American novelist
Harlan Ellison.
Harlan Ellison
American author
Pratchett, Terry
Terry Pratchett
English author
E.E. Smith
American author
Robida illustration
Albert Robida
French illustrator
George R.R. Martin
George R.R. Martin
American writer

Related Quizzes and Features

Quiz
Lobby card for the motion picture film "Things to Come" (1936); directed by William Cameron Menzies. (science fiction, futurism)
Science Fiction Writers Quiz